Year: 2014

And her name is “YannieNEW”….

WE DID IT! Along with our good friend and master mechanic, Don, we installed a new remanufactured Yanmar 3JH2e 38 hp diesel engine into our 1994 Island Packet 35. Day One, Monday, the crane lifted the engine from the crate to below decks, setting it onto the cabin floor. We took over from there to do the installation. This required us to gather up all the OLD engine parts, block, cylinder, mounts, brackets, clamps, exhaust elbow, etc, as the new engine did not have exactly the same connections for cables, mounts and various items. So, we used our IPY company car, the Ford Taurus named “Goldie” and drove to Chris Oliver’s machine shop on Kent Island to pick up our old engine. Well…..the engine is still in the trunk of our car BECAUSE WE CAN’T LIFT IT OUT! So our car looks like a cool LOW RIDER now 🙂 See last photo.

Our poor car filled with the old engine parts

Monday, we spent the afternoon getting the old engine and taking off parts that we needed. We found a broken weld on one motor mount, so we had that repaired. Tuesday, Don worked with us and helped us finish the mounts, and together we used the mainsail halyard to lift the engine from the floor into the engine room. After that, we bolted it down and connected the propeller shaft, after diving under the boat to clean the shaft of barnacles so it would move forward! Yes, I hired a diver two days prior to clean up the shaft and the bottom, but the shaft would not move, so I dove it. By the end of the day Tuesday, we had the engine nearly finished. Wednesday, we worked on the cooling hoses, wiring harness, exhaust system, alternator, grounding wires, pilot solenoid for the starter, and a initial engine alignment. By 4 pm on Wednesday, WE FIRED IT UP. The new engine started in a nano-second and sounded fantastic. We are back up and running. What a job it has been!

Don our Master Mechanic and IP 420 owner

Our next step will be to complete the engine alignment with Don on Thursday, then on Friday we will shake it down as we power over to Baltimore for the Star Spangled Banner Event Weekend! After that, we need to gain confidence in all this re-installed work, and check and recheck all systems, bolts and mounts. One big advantage to this job is…..

We really KNOW the engine room NOW! Heck, we have installed EVERYTHING! No worries now, because if it breaks, we can fix it, that is for sure!

We lifted the engine with the halyard from the top of the mast

This has to go, a slotted engine mount. Not good. We used our old one.

We added a pilot solenoid under the starter, an optional upgrade

This flywheel dampening plate was one of the necessary parts from our old engine

Reinstalling our transmission from Ed L. Thank you, Ed!

Looking down from above as we lift the engine into the room and bolt it down

LOOK AT THAT, new mounts and a clean install

POP the GRUET Champagne, our favorite from NM

Ahhh, a day to celebrate on Island Spirit!

Side Note: We used Shell, DEX-COOL, the orange stuff

Our poor car, “GOLDIE” with about 500 lbs of old engine parts in the trunk

We are so happy to have Island Spirit back up and running, Now it is time to prepare for moving back aboard and our trip #4 south on the ICW to Miami, Biscayne Bay, The Keys, the West Coast of Florida, and the Bahamas. LIFE IS GOOD……

Radeen works the engine room….

Today we hired the experts at Haven Harbour Marina to tow our boat over to the yard and then we hired their expert crane operator to lift our new, remanufactured Yanmar 3JH2-e engine into the boat. This all took less time then it takes to write this blog entry!  We now have a new engine, and it is inside the boat, and we have decided to install the engine ourselves with our friend and master mechanic, Don. Today was just getting the engine into the boat. Now the real work begins.

First on the list today was to work on adding new Yanmar motor mounts. Next, we swapped out the low quality exhaust mixing elbow with the standard yanmar mixing elbow. No this is not the top of the line 3″, $1,000 mixing elbow, but it is what our boat came with, so we will stay with it. I know, we think this may have been the lead cause of our engine failure, so we plan to replace this every 3-4 years now. We also need to install the transmission and an optional starter solenoid relay. We  have to add the coolant loop to the hot water heater, which is an option on the engine installs. This makes hot water when the engine is running, a must have. A stock engine does not come with this.

The new engine in the the crate

So, our next step is to cut up the engine room box and make the engine room door opening large enough to accept this engine. The engine measures 20 1/2″ wide, the engine room door access is 18 1/2″ wide. Oops, looks like the engine will not go through the door.

So, we will try first, but then if it will not twist into the engine room, we will cut up the teak box and remove the side post, giving full access.

The goal Tuesday……GET THE ENGINE INTO THE ENGINE ROOM!

We were towed over to the marina

The crane reached between the back stays and lowered the engine below, well done!

There it is, our new Yanmar 3JH2e below deck on the IP 35

Oops, we found a broken motor mount, which will be re-welded

Old school, very old school /Yanmar exhaust mixing elbow must go

Mixing elbow off

New mixing elbow installed

New motor mounts installed, 100 lbs starboard, 150 lbs port side.

Ka-ching, these motor mounts were 3 years old. Out with them and in with new one$

Great sailing buddies….

This is a catching up blog post which covers the summer of 2014! We sailed back into Rock Hall, MD, to our home slip on May 26, planning for a quick turn around and then setting sail for a return to Block Island, RI. Well, we departed right on time, June 26, 2014, only to have our engine blow up a few miles out. So this summer we removed the engine and then moved HOME, to our passive solar house, where we truly enjoyed seeing family and friends. We took two trips to our Washington DC family where we enjoyed our cousin’s theater production and July 4th. We shared meals with our wonderful sailing and teaching buddies. Over Labor Day, we enjoyed a long-anticipated trip to see Radeen’s family in Washington State and Oregon. We also designed and built a new master bathroom and really loved our time spent at home.

How wonderful, CLAIRE, B.E. visited us in Rock Hall

Here are some photos, about 50, of the summer of 2014. We are now back on board Island Spirit in Rock Hall. We will be re-installing our new re-manufactured engine this week. If all goes well, we hope to sail over to Baltimore for the Star Spangled Banner Event the weekend of Sept 13-14. 

For now, we hope you enjoy our summer of 2014 photo collection below. Thanks for following our blog….

Hayden and Radeen

We applied more varnish, Epifanes coat #6

Radeen waxing the deck

Radeen’s teaching buddy Paulette came for dinner

We installed a new wind machine

The lilies are up, time to set sail for the summer

The engine blew up….our summer sail is off

Celebrating July 4th with family, how fun with Sherry, Paul and family

Working on the engine head, we can fix this….

Bahamas Buddies Nina and Bob of IP Moondance visited on their way to Long Island Sound

We pulled the engine, it was in bad shape

Great friend Jeff helped to take the engine apart

We found the problem, connecting rod #3 spun a bearing!

Pappy and Pam of IP Pappy’s Packet

That is it….we moved off the boat….let’s go home.

Happy Anniversary # 34!

College roommate Anita with Radeen, such great friends

At Dianne and Gene ‘s home where we enjoyed a wonderful meal

Our original plumber, Freddie, plumbed in our new bathroom

Teaching friends Joni and Jim shared a visit

Captain Ron and M.A.(Mary Ann) invited us to their new home in MD, fun fun fun!

Back to DC to visit family again and to see the terrific play “She Kills Monsters”

THANE is the best with GrandMa and PaPa

Party at 394 with our sailing buddies, Craig, Radeen, Gail and Freddie

Silly sailing buddies, Gail, Dianne, Radeen and Wendy

My Best Teaching Buddy, Dianne

The WILD Italian Travel Team from last summer’s trip. I almost broke my neck riding these horses!

SALMON HUNTERS….off to Washington and Oregon

Beautiful ladies in Seattle, Radeen, Frankie and Erin

F. L,F.P. = Frankie Lee Fancy Pants

THE BEST DAY OF THE SUMMER, boating on Lake Washington!

F.L.F.P. with Hayden

Life is great on the lake and on the boat

Wild Man Darren on the 60 MPH Jet Ski

Hiking Mount Rainier….at 7,000 feet

Mt. Rainier, Washington, is so beautiful

1,000 HP, the fastest vehicle I ever rode in….Darren is NUTs…but I loved it!

Southern Oregon at Radeen’s Brother’s log home, it is so beautiful

F.L.F.P the bracelet maker and manicurist extraordinaire

David, Hayden, Lee and Darren. We really did move 3.5 tons of hay in one afternoon! Thanks to Darren, who is soooo strong!

Beautiful ladies, Radeen with her niece, Tanya

My favorite photo of the summer. Sibling BBQ Smoker Team

Family time in Oregon, Thank you, Judi and Lee!

Look at the beautiful setting

Rusty, the wild Mustang, in training

Lee, Judi and Radeen

Raedeen and Judi at Rooster’s in Klamath Falls

Wood River wetlands, Oregon

So, there is our summer 2014 wrap-up. We have hired a crane to lift the new motor into the boat on Monday, Sept 8, 2014 and plan to re-install the engine with our good friend and master mechanic, Don. If all goes well, we should be up and running soon, maybe by Wednesday or Thursday. That is our hope!

Thank you once again for following our blog!

..Out with the engine…

After removing the cylinder head for a valve inspection and possible valve job, we discovered piston #3 with evidence of connecting rod bearing issues or possible main crankshaft issues. We could identify this by the scoring marks on piston #3 where it hit the intake and exhaust valves. We also had movement on piston #3 from top dead center. When tapping lightly on this piston, it moved down slightly; the other two pistons did not move at all. This was NOT GOOD. Now we needed to remove the entire engine block to gain access to the oil pan and to inspect the crankshaft and connecting rods. The question still remains, WHAT HAPPENED? We know we had an overheat to 255F for about 5-10 minutes. We found we have a partially blocked mixing elbow. We know we had one impeller blade break off. So, we were looking for the problem to be with the valves in the head , but now we found a problem in the piston. So, out with the block.

Yanmar 3JH2-E Lifted with halyards

We lifted the engine out using our main halyard and one spare halyard as a safety. The block might weigh about 300 lbs. We received great advice from fellow IP owner John D. who told us to add in the use of the jib sheets to control the lift. This turned out to be the real secret to lifting the engine out ourselves. We originally had planned to be towed over to the next marina where we had hired a crane operator to lift out the engine. But, lucky for us, we have a very good friend and master mechanic here in town, Don B, IP420 Hallelujah. Don helped us with the lifting, moving down the dock and loading.

We lifted the block to the cockpit stoop, then to the cockpit floor, then to the cockpit seat and then to the dock finger pier. It was amazingly controlled and easy. The final trick was to use the finger pier piling with a sheet line back to the motor and the jib winch. This allowed us to winch the engine out and off the boat by pulling with the winch around a piling on the finger pier. Brilliant.

Using the jib sheets to control position aft

It all worked very well and only took about 30 minutes to lift the block and secure it on the hand truck. Down the dock we wheeled it to the parking lot where Don used a Kubota tractor to lift the engine into the rented Uhaul van, where we secured it on an old tire. Good idea, Freddie! We drove it to my other mechanic Chris O. in Stevensville, MD for evaluation. The next day, good friend Jeff G. IP35 Lucille and Radeen and I drove to Chris’ place where he directed us on how to take apart the lower block and pistons. There he showed us the spun connecting rod bearing on piston #3. Time for a rebuild evaluation.

Chris teaching us how to remove the crank

The next day, Chris called and informed us that the cost of parts, machining the crankshaft and replacing the heat ex-changer would run $6,500 plus labor for rebuild. He thought it was not worth rebuilding. So our wonderful and reliable Yanmar 3JH2-E engine that has run over 10,000 nm is dead! We will need to re-power Island Spirit. The cause: Blocked or poor oil delivery to connecting rod bearing #3, all other bearings were perfect! Added to this problem was a restricted exhaust mixing elbow.

At this point, we will be going with Alfred R. Holzer at http://www.SchoonerBayMarinaLLC.com/ where he re-manufactures diesel engines. Mack Boring in NJ, where we took our diesel service classes, referred us to Alfred. Other IPY owners, Kevin and Ceal and John also referred us to Alfred. He has a fantastic reputation! He has engines in stock and he will build you exactly what you want for about 50% the cost of a new engine. So this is the way we will proceed. If we installed the new Yanmar 3JH5, we would need to change out our exhaust system which was newly installed by the Island Packet Yacht’s factory 6 months ago during our refit. Looks like I should have ordered an engine then as well 🙂

http://www.SchoonerBayMarinaLLC.com

Island Spirit will get a new re-manufactured exact replacement engine in 3 weeks. Radeen and I along with Don, our friend and master mechanic, will install the engine. You do know the acronym B.O.A.T. don’t you?

The start of pulling the engine.

Disconnect the prop shaft, pull the transmission, rig the lifting bridle

Lift the engine with the main halyard and a spare

Control the position with the jib sheets and winches

Pull AFT to oppose the forward pull of the halyards

Lift and then use the jib winches to position the engine to the side

We took the aft line and went around a piling to pull it aft, then up and off the boat. Worked great

Hayden, Ray (IP27 Wye’s Guy owner) and Don B.,  our mechanic

Our engine on a hand truck with no transmission

Lift it into the van with a Kubota tractor

This new GMC van was surprisingly quiet and comfortable!

Jeff and I were instructed by Chris on how to take apart the lower block

There it is, the bearing that is frozen to connecting rod #3

This failed bearing costs $10.00 but will cost us $6,000 to $7,000 in the end

Piston #3, my new paper weight

The crankshaft bearings were all fine and so were pistons #1 and #2

Radeen, Chris, our mechanic, and Jeff ,our good friend (Note “Every Penny” in the background, Chris’ record holding race boat!) We all tried our best to fix this engine…..but….

…Our cylinder head on the galley counter…

We are not in Block Island, Toto, nor is this Kansas!  We are in Rock Hall, MD with our engine block torn off of our diesel engine. Yes, we are doing our own rebuild as we try to solve the problem with our engine tapping, overheating, and the loss of horsepower.

After doing the easy items like fuel fittings and line inspection as well as a full cooling system rebuild, we are now into the engine block and the engine head. We are looking at the valves, push rods, rocker arms and valve springs.

Yesterday we removed the cylinder head, which requires you to…

1. Drain all coolant
2. Drain all sea water
3. Remove…
4. ..Exhaust mixing elbow
5. ..Heat exchanger
6. ..Intake manifold and fuel lines
7. ..Fuel Injectors and fuel pipes
8. ..Coolant water pump
9. ..Thermostat and all coolant hoses
10. ..Valve cover
11. ..Valve rocker arm assembly and pushrods
12. ..14 head bolts using a breaker bar and hammer to loosen these
13. ..FINALLY, remove the cylinder head
14. …..Take to Chris Oliver diesel mechanic for rebuild

Our engine torn down

Sherry, Paul and Hayden at the Monument

The Washington Monument

Boat buddy Ken at the cookout

Hayden and Radeen 4th of July in DC

Wonderful family visit, Paul, Radeen, Allison, Brea and Ben

Walking past the Lincoln Memorial

Shopping with Sherry, Radeen and Diane, Love Love Love

The Rock Hall, MD fireworks over the harbor from Ken’s rooftop deck

Step one, remove the exhaust mixing elbow. This will be replaced. These clog up. It was cleaned 3 years ago.

Step two, remove the heat exchanger. Oops, it hits the wall! Now what? The threaded rods in the head will un-thread and then it could come out.

Step three, dump all engine parts in the kitchen sink!

Sort out and inspect all engine parts on the galley counter…NOT fun

Head bolts are really TIGHT….use a breaker bar (pipe) for more leverage

We broke off NO head bolts, lucky us, now off with the head!

Here is another fun family photo with Hayden’s Dad and Peg for his recent 80th Birthday celebration

 
We know engine work is not as exciting and beautiful as sailing photos, but this is all part of the cruising adventure. We are just so glad to be at our home dock….

On the launch pad for a go…

We departed Rock Hall, MD, 30 minutes early (!) on Thursday June 26, 2014. bound for New England with Bill of IP-380 Tamarack and Herb of IP37 Still Crazy and their crews. Then 6 miles out, we had an engine issue like none before. The motor sounded different with an odd tapping noise possibly coming from cylinder #1 of our Yanmar 3JH2E diesel motor. Then we noticed the engine was heating up which I proved with our laser temperature gun. The oil was 255 degrees F. Next our temperature alarms started going off but we already knew we had a problem because in the first 1 hour of running I had done three engine room checks. On the third check, I thought something was wrong before the alarms alerted us. We could only run the motor at 1500 to 2000 RPMs without over heating and there was still a very odd tapping sound, like a valve or piston issue.

Island Spirit at home waiting for a fix.

So, we sadly decided to return to our home dock where we have a car and mechanics that we know and trust. We stopped at one marina whose mechanic told us.”YUP, that sounds BAD!” Thank you, I know that. What do you think it is? “I don’t know, let me go get some tools!” Oh, no, you don’t. Tell me where to start, and I will. So, he wanted the injectors first. A call to a Mack Boring tech also suggested starting with the fuel injectors and then working through the cooling system as these items can cause a tapping if the injectors are misfiring or if the engine is too hot. Our friend, Don Bergen of Bergen Yacht Services and owner of IP420 Hallelujah, is very busy but kindly stopped by to listen to our engine and confirmed these steps as a good way to start.

Yacht was  polished and waxed and varnished

Back at the dock we began taking items apart for testing. First we pulled the injectors and had them “POP TESTED” ….all proved to be fine. Next we looked into the cooling system, trying to find out why she over heated. Sure enough, one impeller blade was broken off! (I had inspected my impeller before departure and it was fine.)   I had already ordered all the parts, hoses, gaskets and o-rings to rebuild the cooling system, planning to do that job in August. So, I took this opportunity to do the job now. We pulled the heat exchanger, cleaned it and added new coolant and all new cooling hoses. We changed the oil since it had over heated and we changed the fuel filters since the engine had surged very slightly two or three times.

The new black cooling hoses

We put this all back together after about 25 hours of work over two days and turned the key. (Amazing she always starts up after I tear the engine apart! That is a great feeling.)  As she heated up, she made a louder and louder tapping noise near cylinder #1. So we now have a great diesel mechanic arriving Tuesday, Chris Oliver from Kent Island, MD. He will probably diagnose the problem in 30 seconds, and we will follow his lead or hire him to fix it.

So…we still have a problem. Time for a sip

The problem has to be:

1. Valve issue, push rod issue, rocker arm issue
2. High Pressure fuel pump not firing the injectors at the right time
3. Lower engine crankshaft bearing issue

1. Thermostat
2. Heat Exchanger
3. Coolant and coolant hoses
4. Impeller
5. Fuel filter clogs
6. Oil levels and filter
7. Propeller fouled

WE HAVE HOPE, that it will be an easy fix

Maybe we should have called the mechanic sooner, but I had to do the cooling system at some point, so now was the time. 

Let’s hope it is a simple push rod or rocker arm or high pressure fuel pump adjustment, because the other items could run in the thousands of dollars.

We had the trip to NYC all figured out We had the currents all figured out We did our homework

When our daylilies bloom at home, it is time for a summer sail

6 weeks of provisions to be stowed!

We hired a diver the day before leaving to clean the bottom and propeller

I bet the problem will be this high pressure fuel pump. $$$$$

AM coffee with our fuel injectors removed. That was fun, try it on your boat!

Valve cover removed, engine spun by hand, checked each rocker arm and push rod

Remove the thermostat and replace with new

Pull the heat exchanger, inspect and clean, then re-assemble

Day two, coffee with my heat exchanger and my BLOCK ISLAND mug

New impeller installed

New fuel filters, this one had 77 hours on it. Look, it’s not dirty.

Our well used Yanmar Service and Parts manuals

Took apart the Heat Exchanger

Took apart the coolant loop

Took apart the seawater cooling loop

Island Spirit at home waiting for a fix.

Once again, we are so lucky that his did not happen in NYC, or Long Island Sound, or Block Island, RI because it would have cost far more. Here we know people and we have good mechanics that we trust. Plus our car is here and this is our home dock. So, if she had to break down, then Island Spirit did us a BIG favor and said…“HEY…I need some attention NOW.” So, her Diesel Motor is getting plenty of attention. Thank you, Island Spirit….

We will be sailing back to Block Island and going the route of New York Harbor and Long Island Sound. This is a “return & review” trip to see if sailing New England is as wonderful as we remember it to be.

We have not been north (NY, CT, RI, MA) since 2011, so it is time for a review. We know of other Island Packet Yacht Owners that are planning to run north as well, so we may have a FLEET, and an Island Packet mini-vous / rendezvous as we travel. Join in anywhere you can find us, to share an anchorage or sail along.

Here is our plan: (Note: This is via NYC and LIS and return to NJ via the ocean)

1. Thur, June 26 Rock Hall MD to CD Canal Engineer Cove, anchor or dock
2. Fri, June 27 CD Canal to Cape May NJ, anchor or dock at Utsch’s Marina, a good fuel stop
3. Sat, June 28 Cape May NJ layday, explore the town
4. Sun, June 29 Cape May NJ to Atlantic City NJ, anchor or dock
5. Mon June 30, Atlantic City NJ to Sandy Hook, long day 12-15 hrs, anchor or dock
6. Tue July 1, Sandy Hook / Atlantic Highlands layday
7. Wed July 2, Sandy Hook  (through Hell Gate) to Long Island Sound, Port Washington, mooring balls, anchor or dock
8. Thur-Mon July 3-7 Port Washington Laydays to ride Long Island Railroad into NYC for days exploring The City. Return to boat each night, relax, enjoy Port Washington.
9. Tue July 8 Port Washington heading East to Duck Island, anchor
10. Wed, July 9 Duck Island heading East towards New London CT
11. Wed or Thur July 9-10 New London CT, drop anchor or take a mooring ball or dock
12. Thur to Sun July 10-13 New London CT, SAILFEST, fireworks, festival weekend
13. Mon July  14 Sail to Block Island, or stop in at Watch Hill RI for a beach day
14. July 14 to July 28 Block Island RI based with trips out from there.
15. July 28 – 30 Looking for a weather window to sail offshore back to Cape May NJ
16. Aug 1-3 Cape May NJ, anchor or dock
17. Aug 4 Cape May to CD or Chesapeake Bay
18. Aug 5 Return to Rock Hall, MD

CLICK to see our CALENDAR

Year #3 Bahamas Run completed…

WE DID IT! We launched our boat from the Island Packet Yachts Factory Refit program on November 4, 2013. We trucked it back to Snead Island Boat Works where we rebuilt all systems and re-installed the canvas, solar panels, mast, new rigging and all reworked wiring. On December 30, we sailed south from near Tampa Bay on the west coast, heading for Biscayne Bay on the east coast of Florida. We based in Biscayne Bay for two months and learned the beauty and diversity of the Bay from South Beach to Boca Chita to Coconut Grove to Key Biscayne. We sailed and enjoyed great anchorages and beautiful sunsets. On March 5th, we set sail for the Bahamas along with two new buddy boats, IP32 Morning Grace with Dixie and Julie and IP38 Moondance with Bob and Nina. Together we all three explored the Exumas south to Black Point, focusing on the Exumas Land and Sea Park. Moving north we sailed to Eleuthera and on to Abaco where we enjoyed relaxing for the month of April. In May, we blasted for home, running offshore legs from Ft. Pierce, FL to Charleston, SC and then onto the Outer Banks of North Carolina. From there we traveled the ICW north to the Chesapeake Bay to our home dock in Rock Hall, MD.

This is our SPOT Trip map, Click to Enlarge https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=880352c229a6c9074

We traveled 2,100+ nautical miles in five months. We had a slip in Bimini for 3 days and a dock in Charleston for 4 days, otherwise we lived on anchor or an occasional mooring ball and loved it. It was another wonderful season cruising and reviewing the Bahamas and learning Biscayne Bay. We will now take a one month break, to work on the boat and visit family and friends.

Our next voyage will begin on June 26th when we depart Rock Hall for New England.

Thank you for sailing along, it was a great trip!

Mooring Ball #50, Spa Creek Bridge, these are our home waters

Good Boat Buddies and Friends: IP40 TINTEAN Sara and Ken invited us for a BBQ Steak dinner!

An Annapolis MD tradition, Chick & Ruth’s Delly Of course we went out for breakfast!

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge north of Annapolis, MD….HOME

Spring Cove Marina, Rock Hall, MD is our home dock

This is the place where we built our cruising dreams, we love it here

The loop is closed….time to run home for a quick break

Please take a look at our SPOT map here:
https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=880352c229a6c9074
This map allows you to zoom in and see the beautiful islands, beaches and locations where we sailed. Spotwalla.com picks up where the SPOT company dropped the ball by not allowing users to easily save their pins.

Blasting up the Chesapeake Bay in 22 hours….

We decided to make an overnight run from Portsmouth, Virginia, to Annapolis, Maryland, due to an approaching front and torrential rains. We also decided to make this run because a full moon was rising 3 minutes after sunset and the winds were to be 10-15 knots for a lovely broad reach. So, we departed the South Ferry Basin at 0800 hours, only to find ourselves in pea soup thick fog. There was so much fog that we almost could not find our way out of the Elizabeth River and into the Chesapeake Bay. By the time we reached Hampton and Point Comfort, we were considering diverting and dropping a hook to wait for the fog to lift. But after studying the weather we saw this fog would lift and be clear by mid morning. WRONG….WRONG…WRONG! This fog was with us for the next 22 hours. At times, we could not see more than 1/4 mile. We have sailed in Maine for three summers, so we have run in fog before, but we have never run in fog like this on the Chesapeake Bay!

This is your nighttime view from the helm

We said good-bye to IP38 Moondance, who headed to Deltaville, and we pressed on with IP40 Tintean. At night we had nearly zero visibility with zero horizon and no full moon could be found. We thought the full moon might light up the fog, but even when 1/4 mile off Cove Point Light house, we could NOT see the beaming light, so we knew the fog was still thick and dense. We pressed on at full speed, 6-7 knots and navigated our way north. Our radar and our AIS (Automated Identification System) alerted us to ships and their paths. We stayed out of the shipping lanes and in the 30-40 foot deep water where ships cannot run. All we could was watch the radar at a 3 to 6 mile screen and look for anything solid on our course.

Radeen with little sleep and very tired

We looked for bell buoys, day marks, fishing boats and 1,000′ long container ships doing 20 knots. We convinced ourselves that we were safe and that we would not hit anything and we kept moving. It was very stressful, especially for 22 hours with little sleep. At the end of this leg, we navigated ourselves into the Annapolis harbor with almost zero visibility. We could not see the Navy Fields or stone walls. We could barely see the first row of mooring balls, so we simply stayed along the port side and hugged the docks as we crawled toward the Spa Creek Bridge.

The Spa Creek Bridge at 6 am in fog

We passed under the bridge at 0600 hours and secured our favorite mooring ball #50 and crashed for a few hours! Later that day, we met good friends Ken and Sara of IP-40 Tintean, with whom we had traveled overnight from Virginia. They invited us to the Eastport Yacht Club for cocktails and snacks with friends. Then we moved on to Backyard Boats where we enjoyed happy hour snacks, more drinks and some dancing. It is great to be back in these waters and Annapolis. Thank you, Sara and Ken, for a great evening of celebrating our safe arrival!

One more leg and we will call this trip a wrap. Saturday morning we will sail the final leg to Rock Hall, MD where we will see friends and dock at our home marina, Spring Cove Marina. It is great to travel, but it is also wonderful to be in our home waters once again!

How to lift a Navy Ship and paint the bottom!

Imagine being stationed on a LIGHT SHIP. These were lighthouses anchored at sea with 8-15 crew members, anchored year round off the coast!

With IP38 Moondance, the South Ferry basin where we love to dock

IP40 TINTEAN with Sara and Ken and crew Trish the day before running the fog together

Portsmouth South Ferry Basin with our sun shades up. It was 93 degrees and sunny! Notice the high tide goes over the dock

Morning fog as we depart Norfolk, VA

Navy ships looking ghostly in the fog

This was our best visibility of the day

This was our radar view from 2000 to 0600, all night long

The Eastport Yacht Club new deck and view out to the Bay

Radeen and Sara enjoying the Eastport Yacht Club. Thank you, Ken and Sara!

One last leg home to Rock Hall, MD and this Bahamas Year #3 will be completed. What a great year it has been. Thank you for sailing along.

IP38 Moondance rounds a tree lined bend….

Note to All: The Dismal Swamp is not dismal, matter of fact, we find it interesting, beautiful, peaceful and photogenic!

After locking up 8-9 feet at the South Mills Lock, you run the 22 miles of the swamp canal where you enter the Deep Creek Lock and drop back down 8-9 feet. Exiting the Dismal Swamp northbound you are then presented with the massive commercial activity and Navy Ship Yards of Portsmouth and Norfolk, Virginia. We find this contrast most interesting, challenging and exciting. That is why we always stay a few days in Portsmouth, VA and enjoy the waterfront town, the Commodore Theater, and the peaceful historic streets and homes. Welcome home, you are almost back to the Chesapeake Bay!

Here are the photos of this section:

Hayden and Radeen at the Rose garden of Elizabeth City, NC

“Cappuccino Girl” Radeen enjoys breakfast out in Elizabeth City

Tug-A-Long heads north for the Dismal Swamp

Tug-A-Long rounds a corner in the Pasquontank River

Buddy Boat IP38 Moondance heading north in the Pasquontank River

A turtle basking in the warm sun

Bob and Nina, IP38 Moondance in the South Mills Lock, entering the Dismal Swamp

Locking up 8-9 feet at the South Mills Lock, entering the Dismal Swamp

Radeen the expert line handler in the South Mills Lock

Welcome to the Dismal Swamp Canal. Thank you ARMY CORP of ENGINEERS

Welcome to VIRGINIA, here is the state line sign in the swamp

I always LOVE this photo shot

The Deep Creek Lift Bridge

s/v ROMANO waiting for the lock to open

IP38 MOONDANCE waiting for the lock

IP38 MOONDANCE in our new anchorage at Deep Creek Basin

Deep Creek Basin is a great place to drop a hook

The Gilmerton Railroad Bridge lifting in front of the lowered Gilmerton highway bridge

Commercial Traffic everywhere in the river

FUNNY: A Lone Canada Geese wonders where he went wrong 🙂

Tugboats moving an empty ship in the river as we pass by

My Favorite Sailor model, Radeen off the Navy Ship Yards

Our next leg will take us home into the wonderful Chesapeake Bay where we have sailed since 1984. This is when and where we feel at home, these are the waters we know, this is comfortable. We have traveled 1,917 nautical miles since December 30, 2013 from Tampa Bay via the Bahamas to the Chesapeake. We are glad to be here!